


In Need of Rescue

by the_many_splendored



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Adultery, Alexander and Peggy Friendship, Bad Decisions While Sleep Deprived, Disabled Character, F/M, Maria Uses a Walking Stick, No Smut, POV Alexander Hamilton, Seduction, mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:36:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25149322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_many_splendored/pseuds/the_many_splendored
Summary: A very basic AU of the first part of "Say No to This" where as part of her troubles, Maria is partially disabled due to a leg injury and requires the use of a cane, which only makes her need Alexander more.
Relationships: Alexander Hamilton & Margaret "Peggy" Schuyler, Alexander Hamilton/Elizabeth "Eliza" Schuyler, Alexander Hamilton/Maria Reynolds, James Reynolds/Maria Reynolds
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	In Need of Rescue

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Congratulations](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23191366) by [aducklingmuggingyou](https://archiveofourown.org/users/aducklingmuggingyou/pseuds/aducklingmuggingyou). 



> Lin Manuel Miranda has said that Alexander's great weakness is damsels in distress - and I imagined a scenario where Maria fell into Alexander's arms like the heroine of a romance novel. I realized she wouldn't be able to sell the swoon if she didn't have either a fainting condition or a leg issue, and I imagined this scenario. Basically, M's life is hard enough, but if she has this old injury, it's only going to be more difficult.
> 
> The fic that inspired this used the lyrics of the scene they were writing as the dialogue, similar to what I'm doing. I use a different tense, but I wanted to make sure the fic author knows that they're appreciated. Go check them out.

When Alexander first hears the knock on his door, he believes it to be a hallucination from lack of sleep. He’s been seeing shadows and ghosts in the corners of his study these late, late nights, and when he opens the door, he’s even more sure that his imagination is running away from him. Why else would Peggy Schuyler Rensselaer be standing on his threshold?

However, as he blinks the exhaustion out of his eyes, he realizes that the woman only partially resembles his sister-in-law. She has Peggy’s long hair and similar facial features, but where Peggy always looks self-assured, this other person looks beaten down and abandoned by the world. Her hair is barely styled, her red dress is of an unfashionable cut, and the walking stick she’s using is about an inch too short for her. The blush on her face looks sickly, not vivacious.

When she speaks, her voice is low and shaky, and she doesn’t look at him directly. “Are you Mr. Alexander Hamilton, sir?”

“I am – and you are…?” Alexander isn’t sure, but between the dress and the cane, he has a feeling he’s seen this woman around the neighborhood.

“Maria Reynolds, sir. I’m sorry for bothering you at home – I’m in some trouble – gah!” Her stick slips out from under her, and the only reason she doesn’t hit the ground is that Alexander catches her in his arms.

“Are you all right, Miss Reynolds?” She nods, and Alexander swears she’s leaning into his shoulder like she’s seeking comfort. “Please, come inside, I’ll find you a chair.” When she’s able to sit at full height, he recognizes that Maria truly is a beauty.

“My husband is a fraud and a cheat, Mr. Hamilton. I married him out of love, but ever since our little girl Susan was born, he’s become a brute – beating me, threatening her, leaving me home alone when I can’t fend for myself – and now he’s gone for good. He left me three days ago for another woman, and…” This is the first time she fully looks Alexander in the face, and her eyes are shining with tears. “I don’t know what we’re going to do. I can’t work with this limp – I’ve sent Susan to live with my mother, but I still don’t have enough to take care of myself. I know you’re an honorable man, and I thought you might know what options I have.”

The words are out of Alexander’s mouth before he even really thinks them through. “Well, at the very least, Miss Reynolds, I can set you up for a loan at the First Bank. It’ll be open first thing tomorrow, and if I’m there to co-sign for you, there shouldn’t be any issues. In the meantime-” He walks over to his desk and pulls out an envelope. “I have thirty dollars here that I was saving for an emergency, and you certainly have an emergency. Will you take it?”

Maria’s tears are now mixed with shock. “You’re too kind, sir. I had just expected some advice, I didn’t think you’d be so generous.” She stands up carefully and accepts the envelope, but she winces as she starts using her walking stick again. “I’ll be heading home now.”

Seeing her struggle, Alexander can’t help the pang in his heart. He’s reminded again of her resemblance to Peggy, and he thinks to himself that he’d kill the man who would let his sister-in-law walk home alone at this hour. Surely he owes Miss Reynolds the same courtesy.

On the walk to the next block where Maria’s home is, she leans on Alexander’s arm more than her cane, and he feels a familiar ache in his gut - like when Eliza rests her head on his shoulder after a long day. He briefly wonders what she would think of this situation – if she would have pity on Maria as well – when he finds himself walking through the door of Maria’s home. Wait a minute…

“Miss Reynolds, I should really be going…” he says, but the pleading look on her face is too much to bear.

“Mr. Hamilton, please, I have to get upstairs to my room, and my leg is starting to hurt. Help me?” Well, how can he say no to that? What kind of cad would leave her to struggle up the steps on her own?

The answer is - a cad who’s smarter than he is, apparently. As soon as they get to her room, she sits on her bed and spreads her legs. The blush on her face has spread down her throat, and though her bed isn’t large, she’s not very tall, and the size contrast emphasizes how alone she says she’s been. The longing in her voice is obvious when she asks him to stay.

The tone Maria’s using short-circuits Alexander’s usually logical brain, and all he can think is “How can I tell her no? She needs me!” He steps into her outreached arms, and when she pulls him back onto the bed and kisses him, he doesn’t stop her.


End file.
